How the Core Strategy -Preferred Options and the Allocations Plan affect Emsworth

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Core Strategy You are being asked to comment on the document “Preferred Options - Core Strategy March 2008.” Many areas of the document affect Emsworth directly. The overall vision and objectives set out on the first few pages are based on certain key points that you may wish to comment on in your responses, as well as more specific points which we hope you will make to HBC.

• You may wish to comment on whether the economy led growth that is driving the whole plan will actually lead to the sustainable development proposed. Will it benefit all the groups in the Borough, matching skills to jobs, for example, or will it lead simply to more people moving into the area to take up opportunities requiring more infrastructure and more houses.
• Decisions made at earlier stages of the consultation were made without knowing definite site locations (now available in the Allocations Plan). This may have resulted in people generally, although not the ERA, asking for distribution of housing across the Borough rather than concentrating housing on Havant and Waterlooville (one of the earlier options). You may wish to comment on this.
• Even earlier consultation led to planning for lower density housing than could have been used. This consultation resulted in a significantly larger use of Greenfield sites than otherwise would have occurred.
• All this has resulted in a large number of houses being proposed in the Emsworth Havant Gap and Emsworth Westbourne Gap. This runs counter to the Strategy Objective set out on page 6, “To ensure development protects and enhances the environment including the sense of place valued by local communities.”
• Houses in gaps affecting Emsworth are a high percentage of the total urban extension sites for the Borough. (total 1499). Urban extensions are greenfield sites. If all the Core Strategy preferred sites are used then 46% of the preferred sites are in Emsworth gaps.
• Housing Density within the present Havant Borough District-Wide Local Plan is a minimum of 40 dwellings per hectare (dph) within certain distances from rail stations, town centres or defined bus routes. The new criteria (Para 2.20) are much higher minima starting at 60dph. You may want to comment on this change. E.g. 65dph 800m from a station is proposed against 40dph within 400m in the present plan.

• Although houses, gaps and the natural environment are principal concerns, other issues raised by the document affecting Emsworth are: infrastructure prior to development; flooding; economy in the shape of a skills area which is the A27site; Emsworth retains its status as a district centre; unspecific comments about improved bus links across the Borough.

Allocations Plan You are asked to comment on HBC Allocation Development Plan and I will highlight the following areas which affect Emsworth particularly:

• Development: The sites listed including those mentioned in the preferred options of the Core Strategy are:

• All these sites affect Emsworth in numerous ways, environmental, impact on gaps, road usage, infrastructure requirements such as schools, medical facilities, water, drainage etc.
• If all 7 urban extension sites in the Allocation Plans which are in gaps around Emsworth were built, then this represents about 70% of the 1499 houses required on greenfield sites in the Borough.
• To find more detail about why these sites were chosen you can look up the Draft Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment which gives many points that are relevant for comment as does the Havant Sustainability Appraisal Development Allocations Document.
• The Allocation Plan specifically raises the names and sizes of gaps. Some appear to have been changed significantly from the present gaps, not only to remove land proposed for urban extensions but also to remove areas such as Southleigh Forest from the Emsworth Havant Strategic Gap as well as changing the status of the Westbourne Gap from being part of a strategic to becoming a local gap.
• The improvement of tree cover mentions the Forest of Bere regeneration but does not propose reinstating any of the former forest in Emsworth.

Actions you can take now and in the future

• First you need to read as much as you have time for from the documents that I have mentioned. There is a list in the table above.
• If you are concerned about a particular aspect of the subjects raised then try and get together with like- minded people with whom you can discuss points. Drop leaflets through neighbour’s doors for example to alert them to issues.
• Do not send in one set of objections/comments, make sure you each send in separate responses.
• Make yourself known tonight if you are already part of such a group and would like others to join you.
• Think about all aspects of the proposals and when you write do not forget to comment on everything you are concerned about. Don’t just seize on the one that affects you most now. The others, especially the general points like numbers of houses per hectare for different locations may come to be an issue for you later.
• If you have already responded and hear things tonight that you want to add then as long as you are before the deadline I believe that you can write again.
• For the future: Watch for the outcome of the plans being published. If you disagree with them comment to your Councillor before they are approved by committee.
• When the plans go to a public inquiry you will have an opportunity to comment in writing and before the inspector. Do not fail to comment and if necessary appear before the inquiry.
• Watch out at all times for a sudden change with some new development being proposed late in the day. Just because a site is removed from the draft plan does not mean it will not be re-inserted at the public inquiry stage.

How to make your views known Write to HBC on all the matters we have discussed by completing the forms available from HBC’s Civic Offices or on-line (Link s to both the documents and the forms can be found in the box on the left).

• Do not worry about being confined to commenting within the space provided on the form. You can attach separate sheets.
• You can also talk to an Emsworth Borough Councillor.

* Please note: The Gaps given above are those currently in force in the local Plan. The LDF documents are proposing changes to the boundaries and status of some of these Gaps. Chris Curry